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About

This is the third instalment in the Pacifica Quartet’s highly anticipated, and already highly acclaimed four-volume CD survey of the complete Shostakovich string quartets: The Soviet Experience: String Quartets by Dmitri Shostakovich and his Contemporaries.

It is the first Shostakovich quartet cycle to include works by other important composers of the Soviet era, adding variety and perspective to the listening experience.

This superbly performed series of audiophile recordings, produced and engineered by multiple Grammy Award winner Judith Sherman, will appeal to everyone interested in great Russian music of the 20th century.

The Pacifica’s previous instalment, The Soviet Experience Volume II, received an extraordinary reception from critics. “The playing is nothing short of phenomenal, bringing new dimensions of interpretative depth and a subtle fusion of intensity and clarity. . . . When the series is complete, it looks set to be the one to own” (The Telegraph).

Listen

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Dmitry Shostakovich: String Quartet No. 9 in E flat major, Op. 117

I. Moderato con moto

II. Adagio

III. Allegretto

IV. Adagio

V. Allegro

Dmitry Shostakovich: String Quartet No. 10 in A flat major, Op. 118

I. Andante

II. Allegretto furioso

III. Adagio

IV. Allegretto

Dmitry Shostakovich: String Quartet No. 11 in F minor, Op. 122

I. Introduction - Andantino

II. Scherzo - Allegretto

III. Recitative - Adagio

IV. Etude - Allegro

V. Humoresque - Allegro

VI. Elegie - Adagio

VII. Finale - Moderato

Dmitry Shostakovich: String Quartet No. 12 in D flat major, Op. 133

I. Moderato

II. Allegretto

Mieczyslaw Weinberg: String Quartet No. 6 in E minor, Op. 35

I. Allegro semplice

II. Presto agitato

III. Allegro con fuoco

IV. Adagio

V. Moderato commodo

VI. Andante maestoso

Reviews

25th May 2013

*****

“Encounters with the Shostakovich quartets are not to be approached lightly, but the Pacifica Quartet proves a wonderfully committed and eloquent guide.”

6th June 2013

*****

“I am glad to have these permanent records of interpretations that strike at the heart of the music, defining the distinctiveness of each quartet and conveying the substance with subtlety, polish and a finely judged spectrum of expression.”

August 2013

*****

“the Pacificas demonstrate strong empathy with the contrasting emotional narratives of each work and probe well beneath the surface simplicity of some of the writing...The Pacifica Quartet brilliantly negotiates [the Weinberg's] considerable technical hurdles, investing the music with conviction and blazing emotional intensity.”